The Galaide Worlds

The Galaide Worlds were once an ethnic Altairan sovereign state, located to the galactic north, of the area in which the Carrick Grand Marches is located (the most southerly Galaide World, Cadon, is reachable via safe jump from Riesefels, Shahar and New Vesta, and of course, New Rodinia.  The original Galaide Worlds territory includes eight systems, and a ninth has been added (Tawasy) in recent years as a settlement of traditionalist Galaide culture.  Galaide is not a sovereign state today, although it is still primarily an Altairan state, it is a satrap of the Dhangetan Cartel.  Most Galaidians are not overly inconvenienced by peaceful transfer of power wherein their morally bankrupt leaders sold out their worlds to the Dhangetans for enormous piles of money, so while they're not happy to no longer being political independent, in actuality, in many ways they are probably more free than they used to be, as the Dhangetans are largely indifferent to anything going on locally on their worlds.  This also, of course, has meant that the unique Galaide culture has been largely erased by a more cosmopolitan hybrid culture that is Galaidian and Dhangetan both, and large numbers of aliens and alien humans now come and go regularly on the Galaide worlds, and even live here permanently—although the population is still well over 90% Altairan of original Galaidian stock across the region.

In addition to Tawasy, which I have already developed, I'll be creating data sheets for 2123 Kari Jora, 2223 Fthughu and 2224 Cadon of the original Galaide Worlds because of their proximity and traffic into and out of the Carrick Grand Marches and the Carthen Colony, although the other five worlds will be left alone unless it turns out that I need more Galaide World detail for some unforeseen reason in the future.

System: Kari Jora
Hex Location: 2123
Star Type: Close double A6 VI, A6 VII (white dwarf)
Number of Worlds: 9
Gas Giants: 3
Planetoid Belt: Kuiper belt and asteroid belt

Starport Type: C routine star port
World Size: Moon-sized
Atmosphere Type: Thin
Surface Water: 49%
Population: Super-populated, 17 billion
Political Affiliation: Dhangetan Cartel
Tags: Industrial world, Mining world, Warlock academy
Notes: At one point the capital of the Galaide Worlds, Kari Jora is now a blue collar system, with only relatively little prosperity except among the corrupt politicians and the cartel operatives who pass all kinds of illicit property through here.  The Dhangetans operate rather oddly; while they themselves recognize little if any sense of lawlessness in their embrace of "free trade" as a concession to the morality of the people who's world they took over, they do still on paper maintain lists of products that are not allowed to pass through the Galaide worlds.  Of course, this is on paper; in reality, there's a lot of contraband that does pass through the Galaide worlds to New Rodinia, Riesefels, and Shahar.  This requires keeping the officials who are supposed to stop this bribed so that they do not in fact stop it too much, and allowing the occasional cargo to fall victim to law enforcement, to keep up images.  The Dhangetans themselves, it appears, find this game amusing, and a relatively low price to pay for maintaining peace on the Galaide worlds; hiring mercenary police or military to keep them pacified would be much more expensive.

Kari Jora also manufactures household goods and other products in very large numbers, and much of the terrestrial surface is covered in factories.  Some of the ocean is dedicated to farming to keep this population fed, although imports from the neighboring Fthughu system are necessary to keep it up entirely.  Mining is also significant in the system, although it is done not on the main, relatively small world, but among the precious metals that make up a significant portion of the asteroid belts.  Although some small claims still linger in the belt, for the most part, the mineral rights have reverted to the Dhangetans, the situation most likely to eventually rouse the ire of the lightly subjugated population.

There is also a warlock academy high in the mountains in the southern polar regions.  Given that the atmosphere is already thin on this planet (like being above 14,000 feet on Earth) it is practically non-existent at this altitude, and the warlock academy is usually sealed with airlocks; although the thaumaturgy of the warlocks has created Garden areas at the Academy, and many use their dweomercraft to allow them to wander the area freely.  These warlocks often travel to Tawasy, and in fact, many come from there originally, where they are particularly revered.  However, many others spread throughout the Galaide Worlds, or beyond, and many have taken their arts become highly profitable and prominent members of Dhangetan society overall.  There is, in fact, a great deal of philosophical conflict at the Academy between the traditionalists who see the Academy and its arts as the rightful inheritance of the Galaidian people, and those who see it merely as a tool to develop their own power, influence or wealth in the greater interstellar area.

System: Fthughu
Hex Location: 2223
Star Type: Single B3 VI
Number of Worlds: 7
Gas Giants: 2
Planetoid Belt: Kuiper belt and two asteroid belts

Starport Type: B high class
World Size: Earth-sized
Atmosphere Type: Dangerous; slow poison (takes days to have effect) requires breath mask
Surface Water: 62%
Population: Medium sized 650 million
Political Affiliation: Dhangetan Cartel
Tags: Tomb world, Xenophilia, Agricultural world
Notes: For many years, the monarchs of the Galaide Worlds would bury their dead on Fthughu, which was not initially colonized except by a few scientific and clerical personnel due to the slow-acting poisonous atmosphere.  All buildings had to have air scrubbers installed and strictly maintained, and anyone walking outside needs at least a filter to keep toxins from entering his body, unless his excursion outside of protected areas is extremely brief.  Later, as the Galaide Worlds expanded, the agricultural potential of the planet was realized, and farmers moved in.  They never grew to an enormous number, however, and much of the population is robotic even still; constructed by the farmers to help them do their work, but gradually grown into a semi-free sentient population block all its own

As time went on, however, the population did grow to a respectable size on its own, although spreading relatively slowly—there are still cast swaths of the landmasses that are completely wild and some that are even unsurveyed.  Because of their relative isolation of free farmers, the Galaidians of Fthughu never developed the attachment to some of the Galaidian religion that flourished prior to the takeover of the state by the Dhangetans, and they think that the Tawasy exiles are, at best, bizarre extremists who embrace a kind of "fake Galaidianism" and champion it.  They are also unlikely to have been very changed by the advent of the Dhangetans, although some of the young people have left the farms and live now in the sin city cosmopolitan centers where the Dhangetans are most likely to have attracted their own type of offworlders and established their own cultural centers.

This conservatism meant that they didn't really respect the last rulers of the Galaide Monarchy enough to care what happens to their graves, which are littered across the landscape.  Many of them indeed have already plundered them for stones, or any grave goods that could be useful, and they have hardly stood in the way of others who have come to the planet to do the same.  In the minds of the Fthughians, the corrupt Galaidian nobility made their own bed and now can lie in it.

In the minds of most, Fthughu is therefore a rather boring farm world, without much going on, but in reality, there are many dangerous predators in the wilderness, and there are more riches to be found in forgotten tombs than most realize.  A handful have started to recognize the potential and are actively searching for tombs to raid, but it is a long way away from being a boom town economic situation still.  And the presence of a high quality port have made it a stopover that has replaced much of the business that used to travel through Cadon; although those who stop here find the place boring, and many barely leave their ships if they can help it.

System: Cadon
Hex Location: 2224
Star Type: Distant double star O8 V, M1 V
Number of Worlds: 5
Gas Giants: 4
Planetoid Belt: N

Starport Type: X No star port
World Size: Earth-sized
Atmosphere Type: Thin
Surface Water: 70%
Population: Super-populated 11 billion
Political Affiliation: Dhangetan Cartel
Tags: Death world, Civil war, Flying cities
Notes: Cadon is a world that one must be very careful to visit.  The Dhangetans and their lackeys, including many Galaidians, live in flying cities high above the surface, but below, the world is turned over the anarchy.  Revanchist Galaidians fight against savages who are little more than bandits and even the armies of a death sage that had lingered here for centuries if not millennia (after whom the planet is named, in fact) that decided to make a play after the arrival of the Dhangetans, ending a thousand years of quiescence.  However, this same cyberlich and his allies are often seen in the flying cities, so whatever his game is and how it relates to the Dhangetans is unclear.  Is he an ally of theirs?  Or a rival?  Many indications suggest that latter, but his friendly reception when he visits are difficult to explain.  Either way, the Dhangetans seem to have tired somewhat of the chaos and mercenaries are streaming into the system under various banners to fight against either the undead hordes or the revolutionaries, or both.  War profiteering is also one of the number one industries for outsiders and Galaidians of other worlds alike, although it is a difficult business, given how dangerous the world is and how distrustful every faction is of everyone else.  Smugglers or gun-runners or others who make "the Cadon run" are the most skilled and respected in the profession, and some in fact attempt to make a name for themselves here before moving on.  Many do not return.

While all of this activity has been profitable for many, it has had the opposite effect on others—what was once a thriving trade hub has seen interstellar shipping dry up almost entirely, and much of that lost business has relocated to New Rodinia.  This is especially true after the last of the star port facilities were destroyed by the fighting factions, although true convoys and caravans still pass through here to skim unrefined fuel from the hydrogen gas giants, scrub it in their filters, and jump back out of the system again all in 48 hours.  Because for the most part, the civil war and the other dangers associated with it take place on the surface rather than within the space of the system, this is usually considered a safe option.  However, a few enterprising pirates have realized this and attempted to make a go at preying on this traffic too.